Compensating mechanism



July 29, 1941.

H. w. PIQUET COMPENSATING MECHANISM 2 Sheet-Sheet 1 Filed April 30, 1941 COMPENSATING MECHANISM Filed April 56, 1941 V 2 Sheets-Sheet 2' Patented July 29, 1941 FFHCE COMPEN SATIN G MECHANISM Henry W. Piquet, Moorestown, N. 3., assignor to MacAndrews & Forbes Company,

Camden,

N. J., a corporation of New Jersey Application April 36, 1941, Serial No. 391,187

6 Claims.

This invention relates to new and useful improvements in feeding or conveying apparatus for sheet material which is fed in a continuous sheet, cut into successive sections and the sections then fed to a suitable drier.

More particularly the present invention relates to apparatus of the type described embodying novel mechanism operable to cut sections of uniformly equal length from the continuous sheet.

In apparatus such as that to which the present invention pertains there is provided a wet saw table, a vertically pivotable tipple for receiving the sections from the saw table and a drier having a plurality of decks, the construction and operation of said tipple being such that the successive sheet sections are deposited by the tipple serially into the respective decks of the drier from the top downward. The disclosure in United States Letters Patent No. 1,949,281 in the name of R. C. Moore is an example of one type of construction and operation of such apparatus.

It is customary in apparatus of the present type to control the cutting of the sections from the continuous sheet by means of a suitable mechanism carried by the tipple and actuated through engagement by the leading edge of the sheet fed thereon, and, as the cut-off or saw control mechanism is relatively fixed with respect to the tipple, the vertical pivotal movement of the latter causes the distance of the control mechanism from the saw progressively to increase as the tipple moves progressively downward to deposit sections in the respective decks of the drier. Thus each section cut from the continuous sheet during movement of the tipple from the top to the bottom deck of the drier is of a different length thereby resulting in considerable waste over a period of time.

With the foregoing in mind, the present invention has for its object the provision in apparatus of the present type of a novel construction and arrangement of the cut-off or saw control mechanism whereby sections of uniform or equal length are cut from the continuous sheet regardless of the position of the vertically pivotal tipple.

Another object of the invention is to provide in apparatus of the present type a construction and arrangement of the cut-off control mecha nism which may be set to cut any desired numbers of sheets of a given length from the continuous sheet and subsequently reset to cut sheets of a difierent length, the sheets cut at any given setting of said m chanism being of equal length.

These and other objects of the invention and the various features and details of the cnstruction and operation thereof are hereinafter fully set forth and described and shown in the accom panying drawings, in which:

Figure 1 is a diagrammatic top plan view of a wet saw table and tipple used for severing and delivering sections formed from a continuous sheet of material.

Figure 2 is a diagrammatic view in side elevation of the wet saw table, tipple and a multiple deck drier to which the sections are fed by said tipple; and

Figure 3 is a diagrammatic view in elevation illustrating the novel operation of a feature of the present invention.

Referring now to the drawings, the invention is illustrated and described as being embodied in a suitable feeder apparatus comprising a wet saw table A, a tipple B and a deck drier C. As shown, the table A may comprise a plurality of rollers 2 extending transversely thereof in longitudinally spaced relation and in a substantially horizontal plane upon which wall board or like sheet material is intended to travel continuously in the direction indicated by the arrow. The opposite ends of these rollers 2 may be suitably journalled in frame members 3, and at least some of said rollers 2 are positively driven in order to advance the wall board or other sheet material,

, Extending diagonally across and above the saw table A is a support 4 on which is mounted for reciprocable movement a carriage 5 from which depends arotary saw 6 operable to produce a out upon the sheet material in the conventional manner.

The tipple B may consist of a pair of longitudinally extending side frame members I suitably supported in parallel spaced relation to provide a rigid frame which is pivotally mounted as at 8 at its feed end adjacent the discharge end of the wet saw table A so that the other or free end of said tipple B can be elevated and lowered, as the case may be, to bring said free end into alignment with any one of the decks at the feed end of the drier C. Elevating and lowering of the tipple B may be accomplished, for example, by a chain, cable or the like 9 which extends over a suitable wheel id and has one end secured to the free end of the tipple while the other end is suitably counterbalanced, a reversible motor or the like (not shown) being provided to drive the wheel Ill in either direction so that the free end of the tipple is elevated or lowered as the case may be.

The tipple B preferably further includes an endless conveyor II having suitable driving connections with the drive mechanism for the Wet saw. These driving connections preferably comprise a suitable clutch and change speed mechanism D operable to cause the tipple conveyor to be driven normally at the same speed as the rollers 2 of the wet saw table A, and also at speeds in excess of that of the wet saw table rollers 2 so that a preceding sheet section will be discharged irom the tipple conveyor into the drier C before the leading edge of the following sheet section reaches the tipple, the speed of the tipple conveyor returning to normal or board speed before the leading edge of the following sheet reaches it.

Control of the operation of the saw 6 to cut sections from the continuous sheet is affected by a saw starting switch I2 carried by the tipple B adjacent the feed end thereof and this switch l2 has an operating arm or lever l3 which depends or extends into the path of travel of the sheet for engagement and actuation by the leading edge thereof thus operating the switch [2 to cause the saw 5 to out said sheet crosswise thereof.

A feature of the present invention resides in the novel mounting and arrangement of the switch l2 upon the tipple B so that as said tipple is moved through each stage or step of its vertical pivotal movement the position of the switch [2 is varied longitudinally of the tipple to compensate for the change in vertical position of said tipple and remains at all times in a position at a fixed distance from the saw 6 thereby assuring the cutting of sections of equal length from the continuous sheet by the saw 5,

Now in accordance with the present invention, the switch I2 is mounted upon a bar or rod I 4 which is supported for sliding movement longitudinally at one side of the tipple B by means of suitable brackets l5 which are secured to and project upwardly from one of the side members 1 of the tipple frame. The wet saw table end of this bar or rod I l has mounted thereon a bracket member l8 having a depending leg portion l1 and pivotally connected to this depending portion I! is one end of a link iii. The other end of said link 13 is pivotally connected to the depending leg portion IQ of a bracket 20 which is secured fixedly to the side of a stationary frame structure 2| secured upon the wet saw table A, and the height of this framework 2! above said wet saw table A and above the rollers 2, as well as the length of the depending leg IQ of the bracket 20, is such that the center of rotation of the pivot of the link 18 to said leg I9 is in the plane of the center line of the continuous sheet advanced by the rollers 2 as shown by the dot and dash line in Figure 3 of the drawings.

By connecting the switch supporting bar or rod It to the wet saw table A in this manner it will be seen that as the tipple B moves vertically upward and downward, the connection between said bar l4 and the wet saw table will operate to cause the slidably mounted bar [4 to vary its position longitudinally of the tipple B and remain at all times at a given fixed distance from the saw 6 thereby operating the latter to cut sections of equal length from the continuous sheet regardless of the vertical position of the tipple as shown diagrammatically in Figure 3 of the drawings.

Of course, it is desirable in apparatus of the present type that it be possible to out different length sections from the continuous sheet and for the purpose of accomplishing this in the present invention the switch I2 is slidably adjustably secured upon the bar or rod M by means of suitable brackets 22. Hence, the switch l2 may be secured at any position desired along the bar or rod I4 and when once positioned will, through its connections with the wet saw table A, operate to cause the saw 6 to cut equal sections of any given length from the continuous sheet.

From the foregoing it will be seen that the present invention provides for apparatus of the present type, comprising a wet saw table and a vertically pivotal tipple, a saw control mechanism of the novel construction and arrangement operable to compensate for changes in position of said tipple so that regardless of the tipple position the saw control mechanism or switch will at all times be in a position equi-distant from the wet saw thus insuring sections of equal length being cut from the continuous sheet.

I claim:

1. In apparatus of the character described the combination with a support for advancing continuous sheet material, cutting means movable crosswise of the support for severing the sheet material into sections, a tipple conveyor having one end pivotally connected adjacent said support and its opposite end free for movement vertically between predetermined limits, and mechanism for controlling operation of said cutting means to sever sections from said sheet material including, a switch device associated with said tipple and having an operating arm extending into the path of travel of said sheet material for actuation by the leading edge thereof, of an element mounted for sliding movement longitudinally of the tipple and carrying said switch device, and connections between the element and the support operable to vary the relative position of said element longitudinally of the tipple conveyor upon vertical pivotal movement of the latter and maintain the switch equally spaced from the cutting means thereby to insure the severing of sections of equal length from the sheet material by said cutting means.

2. In apparatus of the character described the combination with a support for advancing continuous sheet material, cutting means movable crosswise of the support for severing the sheet material into sections, a tipple conveyor having one end pivotally connected adjacent said support and its opposite end free for movement vertically between predetermined limits, and mechanism for controlling operation of said cutting means to sever sections from said sheet material including, a switch device adjustably associated with said tipple and having an operating arm extending into the path of travel of said sheet material for actuation by the leading edge thereof, of an element mounted for sliding movement longitudinally of the tipple and carrying said switch device, and pivotal connections between the element and the support operable to vary the relative position of said element longitudinally of the tipple conveyor upon vertical pivotal movement of the latter and maintain the switch equally spaced from the cutting means thereby to insure the severing of sections of equal length from the sheet material by said cutting means.

3. In apparatus of the character described the combination with a support for advancing continuous sheet material, cutting means movable crosswise of the support for severing the sheet material into sections, a tipple conveyor having one end pivotally connected adjacent said sup port and its opposite end free for movement vertically between predetermined limits, and mechanism for controlling operation of said cutting means to sever sections from said sheet material including, a switch device associated with said tipple and having an operating arm extending into the path of travel of said sheet material for actuation by the leading edge thereof, of an element mounted for sliding movement longitudinally of the tipple and carrying said switch device, a bracket carried by the element at the support end thereof, a second bracket mounted on said' support, and a link having its opposite ends pivotally connected respectively to said brackets, the brackets and link providing connections between the element and the support operable to vary the relative position of said element longitudinally of the tipple conveyor upon vertical pivotal movement of the latter and maintain the switch equally spaced from the cutting means thereby to insure the severing of sections of equal length from the sheet material by said cutting means.

4. In apparatus of the character described the combination with a support for advancing continuous sheet material, cutting means movable crosswise of the support for severing the sheet material into sections, a tipple conveyor having one end pivotally connected adjacent said support and its opposite end free for movement vertically between predetermined limits, and mechanism for controlling'operation of said cutting means to sever sections from said sheet material including, a switch device associated with said tipple and having an operating arm extending into the path of travel of said sheet material for actuation by the lea-ding edge thereof, of an element mounted for sliding movement longitudinally of the tipple and carrying said switch device, a bracket carried by the element at the support end thereof, a frame secured upon the support, and a link having its opposite ends pivotally connected respectively to said bracket and frame, the bracket, frame and link providing connections between the element and the support operable to vary the relative position of said element longitudinally of the tipple conveyor upon vertical pivotal movement of the latter and maintain the switch equally spaced from the cutting means thereby to insure the severing of sections of equal length from the sheet material by said cutting means.

5. Apparatus as claimed in claim 3 wherein the axis of rotation of the pivotal connection of the link to the second bracket lies in the horizontal plane of the center line of the sheet material advanced by the support.

6. Apparatus as claimed in claim 4 wherein the axis of rotation of the pivotal connection of the link to the frame lies in the horizontal plane of the center line of the sheet material advanced by the support.

HENRY W. PIQUET. 

